The present invention generally relates to solenoid operated valves, and more particularly to solenoid operated valves having guards to limit metal-metal contact to prolong the working life of the valve.
Solenoid operated valves are useful in many industrial applications and offer a number of advantages over traditional mechanical valves. Automotive uses can involve environments subject to high and prolonged levels of vibration. Aeronautical devices such as rockets often involve exceptionally high levels of vibration and may require that the valves be subject to numerous uses before replacement. These types of environments can lead to failure of certain aspects of a solenoid operated valve, which in turn can negatively impact or prevent the use of the device in which the valve is employed.
There remains room for improvement in the design and use of solenoid operated valves, particularly with regard to the ability of such valves to withstand high and prolonged levels of vibrations while preventing failure when subjected to such high-dynamic environments.